An activist hedge fund calling for a change of control at electronic broker eSpeed has piled further pressure on the company by demanding that its board appoint a separate independent auditor to study an agreement it has with parent Cantor Fitzgerald.

Chapman Capital, which holds a 9.3% stake in eSpeed through two investment funds, called for eSpeed's board to elect "an independent auditor specialising in corporate governance", distinct from existing group auditor Deloitte & Touche, to study the arrangement.